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PHWA Announce 2019-20 Midseason Awards

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Though they have no bearing on the eventual winners, each season the Professional Hockey Writers Association vote for the Midseason Awards to give fans an idea of who is leading the charge around the NHL at the halfway point. Today those ballots have been tallied and the midseason trophies were given out:

Hart Trophy – Most valuable player

1. Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
2. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
3. David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins

Norris Trophy – Best defenseman

1. John Carlson, Washington Capitals
2. Roman Josi, Nashville Predators
3. Dougie Hamilton, Carolina Hurricanes

Selke Trophy – Best defensive forward

1. Sean Couturier, Philadelphia Flyers
2. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins
3. Ryan O’Reilly, St. Louis Blues

Calder Trophy – Best rookie

1. Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche
2. Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks
3. Victor Olofsson, Buffalo Sabres

Lady Byng Trophy – Sportsmanship & gentlemanly conduct

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
2. Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
3. Ryan O’Reilly, St. Louis Blues

Vezina Trophy – Best goaltender

1. Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
2. Ben Bishop, Dallas Stars
3. Darcy Kuemper, Arizona Coyotes

Jack Adams Award – Best coach

1. Mike Sullivan, Pittsburgh Penguins
2. John Tortorella, Columbus Blue Jackets
3. Craig Berube, St. Louis Blues

Jim Gregory GM of the Year Award

1. Joe Sakic, Colorado Avalanche
2. John Chayka, Arizona Coyotes
3. Doug Armstrong, St. Louis Blues

Rod Langway Award – Best defensive defenseman

1. Jaccob Slavin, Carolina Hurricanes
2. Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
3. Roman Josi, Nashville Predators

Comeback Player of the Year Award

1. William Nylander, Toronto Maple Leafs
2. Anthony Duclair, Ottawa Senators
3. Max Pacioretty, Vegas Golden Knights

Minor Transactions: 01/19/20

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Following last night’s results, each of the top five teams in the Pacific Division are within one point of each other, top to bottom. The Vancouver Canucks stand alone in first place with 58 points, but with each of the following four teams sitting at 57. It is the first time since 1978 that the top five teams in an NHL division have all been separated by such a small margin after January 1. Of course, not all point totals are created equal; Vancouver and Edmonton have played just 49 games, while Calgary has 50 games played and Vegas and Arizona have 51. As such, the teams’ point percentages differ more than their total points, especially in the case of the Canucks versus the Knights and Coyotes. Nonetheless, it is still a tight division, and one that has been on the rise this season to now occupy both Western Conference wild card spots. The Central Division’s top three – St. Louis, Colorado, and Dallas – may all have better records than any team in the Pacific, but the rest of their division has been overtaken. The 57/58-point range at this point in the year is nothing to criticize either. There are currently eleven teams with 57 or 58 points, all of whom are in playoff positions or just outside. So while the likes of Washington, Boston, and St. Louis might make the high fifties look light, it is actually a great pace for a playoff hopeful. With such a tight postseason picture right now in both conferences, though specifically the Pacific Division, every game counts and every little move made impacts those games. Keep an eye on all of today’s transactions here, as you never know what minor move could shift a season:

  • Many of “today’s” minor transactions occurred late last night, as 17 different teams are entering their bye week and many shuffled their young players to minors once their final game came to an end. The Ottawa Senators are one such example. The team reassigned young forwards Drake Batherson, Filip Chlapik, and Rudolfs Balcers to AHL Belleville following last night’s win.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs were in a similar boat, sending Adam Brooks and Tim Liljegren back to the AHL’s Marlies following last night’s game, which was also Liljegren’s NHL debut. Brooks has played in seven games with the Maple Leafs so far in his rookie season.
  • The Arizona Coyotes also head on bye, and have demoted goalie Adin Hill, defenseman Kyle Capobianco, and forward Michael Chaput to the Tuscon Roadrunners. Hill has played a key role of late for the ‘Yotes, but the team hopes to have Darcy Kuemper and Antti Raanta at full strength on the other side of this time off.
  • The St. Louis Blues made just one minor move before hitting their bye, assigning young defenseman Niko Mikkola to the San Antonio Rampage. Mikkola has looked good on the ice if not on the score sheet in five games with the Blues this season.
  • Also making just a single demotion before the bye were the Dallas Stars, who sent forward Joel Kiviranta to AHL Texas. Kiviranta is still looking for his first NHL point after seeing limited ice time in seven NHL games and will benefit from an increased role in the minors for a while.
  • Other bye week moves being reported by CapFriendly include the Los Angeles Kings sending forwards Matt Luff and Jaret Anderson-Dolan to the Ontario Reign, the San Jose Sharks shifting Joachim Blichfeld, Joel Kellman, and Antti Suomela to the AHL Barracuda locker room, and the Montreal Canadiens reassigning veteran Dale Weise to the Laval Rocket.
  • This morning, the Buffalo Sabres announced their own flurry of moves, reassigning forwards Rasmus Asplund and Scott Wilson and defenseman Lawrence Pilut to the AHL’s Rochester Americans. While Pilut and Wilson have seen limited action, Asplund’s demotion is a bit surprising. Of every player sent down so far for their team’s bye week, none have played as many NHL games this season as Asplund’s 28. Yet, apparently the Sabres do not feel that he has earned the week off.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks announced they have assigned forward Dylan Sikura to the Rockford Ice Hogs of the AHL. The 24-year-old had a more successful run with Chicago this year as he scored his first NHL goal and three points in nine games. He’ll continue to work on his game in Rockford where he has nine goals and 16 points in 22 games.
  • The New Jersey Devils announced they have assigned three players to their AHL affiliate, the Binghamton Devils, including goaltender Cory Schneider and forwards Michael McLeod and Jesper Boqvist. It will be Boqvist’s first trip to the AHL as he made the New Jersey squad directly out of Sweden.
  • The Edmonton Oilers announced they are sending injured defenseman Matt Benning to the Bakersfield Condors of the AHL on a conditioning stint. The 25-year-old blueliner has been out with a head injury since Dec. 1. The team has been extra cautious with Benning as its his second head injury this season. With the Oilers off until Jan. 29, Benning’s best chance of getting game experience is with the Condors, who have four games coming up this week. Benning has appeared in just 24 games this season, averaging just 13:42 of ice time.

David Rittich Added To All-Star Game

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Another goaltender has been forced to pull out of the All-Star festivities planned for later this month, as Darcy Kuemper of the Arizona Coyotes will not be participating due to injury. In his place, David Rittich of the Calgary Flames will join the Pacific Division squad. No word yet on who will replace Gerard Gallant as head coach of the team, who was fired earlier today.

Kuemper hasn’t played since December 19th, and his recovery is paramount to the Coyotes’ long-term success. The goaltender is out with a lower-body injury that quickly brought speculation that the All-Star game would be out of the question.

His absence however means that the Coyotes will not have a representative at the game, unless someone else is put in as a replacement over the next few days.

Snapshots: Kuemper, Fitzgerald, Pateryn

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It looks like the Arizona Coyotes will be without starting goaltender Darcy Kuemper for a while longer. Despite traveling with the team, giving Coyotes fans some hope that he was close to returning, Richard Morin of the Arizona Republic revealed that Kuemper has been ruled out until before the All-Star break.

While Kuemper had an impressive season last year, challenging for the starters’ role then, the 29-year-old netminder has been even better this year, posting a 2.17 GAA and a .929 save percentage in 25 games. However, he suffered a lower-body injury on Dec. 19 and now, at best, isn’t likely to return until Jan. 29. Unfortunately, Antti Raanta has also been out, leaving the team with Adin Hill as its starting goaltender for the time being.

  • While the New Jersey Devils intend to undergo a thorough search for a new general manager sometime in the near future, NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti wonders whether the team already has that man in new interim general manager Tom Fitzgerald. The scribe believes that Fitzgerald is considered to be a future GM and if he can have a quality trade deadline, he could be the top candidate to take the job permanently.
  • Minnesota Wild defenseman Greg Pateryn made his season debut today after missing the first 44 games of the season after having bilateral core muscle surgery, according to Star Tribune’s Sarah McLellan. Pateryn has struggled in his rehab, however, as he was sent to Iowa on a conditioning stint on Dec. 2, but was later activated and placed back on injured reserve. Pateryn should provide the Wild with some defensive depth. While he doesn’t offer much in offensive ability (one goal, six assists in 80 games last year), he did provide much needed defense, including 144 hits and 118 blocks.

West Notes: Predators, Hjalmarsson, Kuemper, Flames

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After adding Matt Duchene in free agency this summer, the Predators were expected to once again be one of the top teams in the Central Division.  However, that hasn’t come to fruition as Nashville is tied for last in the division (though they’ve played the fewest games in the conference).  Speaking with 104.5 The Zone (audio link), GM David Poile indicated that he’s “open for business” when it comes to the trade market and acknowledged that if things don’t turn around quickly, they could be sellers for the first time in quite a while.  When asked about the possibility of making a coaching change, Poile stated that replacing Peter Laviolette is “not in my game plan right now”.  Laviolette is in his sixth season with the team and they have made the playoffs in each year that he has been there.

More from the West:

  • Coyotes defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson has resumed skating in a non-contact jersey, notes Richard Morin of the Arizona Republic. He has been out since suffering a broken fibula in their fourth game of the season.  GM John Chayka mentioned that there’s still no set timeline for his return but that he’s now more day-to-day than week-to-week.  Meanwhile, goaltender Darcy Kuemper has resumed skating on his own but it’s still uncertain if he’ll be cleared to play by the All-Star break.
  • While there isn’t an imminent trade on the horizon, Flames GM Brad Treliving told reporters, including Sportsnet’s Eric Francis, that he fully intends to use the cap room freed up by the Michael Frolik trade and went as far as to call that the return in the trade and not the fourth-round pick they received. Calgary didn’t retain any of his $4.3MM cap hit in the move which puts them with nearly $5MM in total cap room to work with between now and the deadline.

NHL All-Star Selections Announced

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Although it took some time, with each individual team rolling out their own selections, the final rosters for All-Star Weekend have come into focus. Below are each of the four divisional team, set to face off in the Skills Competition on Friday, January 24th and the All-Star Game on Saturday, January 25th:

Atlantic Division

G Frederik Andersen, Toronto Maple Leafs
G Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins
D Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
D Shea Weber, Montreal Canadiens
F Tyler Bertuzzi, Detroit Red Wings
F Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres
F Anthony Duclair, Ottawa Senators
F Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers
F Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
F David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins (C)

Metropolitan Division

G Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals
G Joonas Korpisalo, Columbus Blue Jackets
D John Carlson, Washington Capitals
D Dougie Hamilton, Carolina Hurricanes
D Seth Jones, Columbus Blue Jackets
F Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders
F Jake Guentzel, Pittsburgh Penguins
F Travis Konecny, Philadelphia Flyers
F Kyle Palmieri, New Jersey Devils
F Artemi Panarin, New York Rangers

Central Division

G Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues
G Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
D Roman Josi, Nashville Predators
D Alex Pietrangelo, St. Louis Blues
F Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
F Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche (C)
F Ryan O’Reilly, St. Louis Blues
F Mark Scheifele, Winnipeg Jets
F Tyler Seguin, Dallas Stars
F Eric Staal, Minnesota Wild

Pacific Division

G Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas Golden Knights
G Darcy Kuemper, Arizona Coyotes
D Mark Giordano, Calgary Flames
F Logan Couture, San Jose Sharks
F Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
F Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings
F Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers (C)
F Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
F Jakob Silfverberg, Anaheim Ducks
F Matthew Tkachuk, Calgary Flames

Additionally, each divisional squad will have one more addition as decided by the Last Men In fan vote. Voting opens on January 1st and closes on the 10th. Here are the candidates:

Atlantic Division – Patrice Bergeron, Rasmus Dahlin, Dylan Larkin Aleksander Barkov, Max Domi, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Steven Stamkos, Mitch Marner

Metropolitan Division – Teuvo Teravainen, Nick Foligno, Nico Hischier, Brock Nelson, Mika Zibanejad, Claude Giroux, Kris Letang, T.J. Oshie

Central Division – Jonathan Toews, Cale Makar, Jamie Benn, Ryan Suter, Matt Duchene, David Perron Patrik Laine

Pacific Division – Ryan Getzlaf, Clayton Keller, Johnny Gaudreau, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Drew Doughty, Tomas Hertl, Quinn Hughes, Max Pacioretty

Five Key Stories: 12/16/19 – 12/22/19

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The days leading up to the NHL’s Holiday Roster Freeze are always full of potential for big moves by teams looking to make a change before a stretch of mandatory inactivity. This year did not disappoint, as the biggest target on the rental market was dealt, highlighting a busy week. Here are the five biggest stories of the past week:

Taylor Hall Traded To Arizona: The week started with a bang, as the Taylor Hall saga came to an end with a trade to Arizona. The Coyotes sent a 2020 first-round pick, a conditional 2021 third-round pick, and prospects Nate Schnarr, Nick Merkley and Kevin Bahl to the Devils. New Jersey retained half of Hall’s $6MM cap as well. Hall was the top name in the rental market this season, but many were left underwhelmed by the trade return. The asking price may have been affected by Hall’s reluctance to negotiate an extension in-season, which he has maintained since arriving in the desert. Nevertheless, the Coyotes’ acquisition could make them the favorite to win the Pacific Division this year as they pursue the franchise’s first Stanley Cup.

Ilya Kovalchuk Leaves Kings: Veteran Ilya Kovalchuk is on the move as well, but his destination is yet to be determined. He and the Los Angeles Kings came to a mutual agreement on a contract termination on Monday, with Kovalchuk clearing unconditional waivers on Tuesday. The former superstar never fit with the Kings after returning from the KHL and could be tempted to return to Russia after this failure. However, he is reportedly willing to sign a minimum deal to remain in the NHL as he too is pursuing his first Stanley Cup, without much time left in his lengthy career.

Eric Comrie, Stefan Noesen Claimed: Three players entered the waiver wire on Wednesday and two emerged on new teams. Both goaltender Eric Comrie and forward Stefan Noesen were claimed on waivers. For Comrie, he returns to the Winnipeg Jets, the team with which he began the season, after making stops with the Arizona Coyotes and Detroit Red Wings. Meanwhile, Noesen only signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins a few weeks ago, but is already on the move to the San Jose Sharks. Austin Czarnik, the most accomplished player waived on Wednesday, but also the most expensive, was not claimed and remains with the Calgary Flames.

The Injury Bug Bites: Injuries are not exactly an uncommon occurrence in the NHL, but this week in particular took a heavy toll across the league. Just how bad was it? Here is the list of players who were announced this week as being out long-term: Josh Anderson, Danny DeKeyser, Troy Terry, Derek Grant, Andrew Peeke, Ryan Murray, Darcy Kuemper, Jason Zucker, Josh Leivo, Brandon Saad, Cal Clutterbuck, Anthony Mantha, and Oliver Bjorkstrand. 

Chris Snow Diagnosed With ALS: Calgary Flames Assistant General Manager Chris Snow has been diagnosed with ALS, as disclosed by his wife in a public letter. As Snow begins this difficult battle, we here at PHR wish he and his family the best this holiday season.

 

Darcy Kuemper Out Week-To-Week

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4:08pm: Craig Morgan of The Athletic reports that Kuemper’s injury may keep him out until the All-Star break at the end of January.

1:30pm: The Arizona Coyotes have relied on their incredible goaltending this season to get them to first place in the Pacific Division, but they’ll have to show they can do more than just keep the puck out of their own net now. Darcy Kuemper, one of the Vezina Trophy favorites at this point, has suffered a lower-body injury and will be out on a week-to-week basis.

Kuemper, 29, trails only Ben Bishop among starting goaltenders with a .929 save percentage this season, one that dropped dramatically when he allowed seven goals on 32 shots last night. The Coyotes ended up losing the game 8-5, exactly the opposite of the type of score head coach Rick Tocchet has been chasing this season.

In his place the Coyotes have recalled Adin Hill from the minor leagues, but the starting job will now go back to Antti Raanta. Acquired from the New York Rangers in the summer of 2017, Raanta was brought to Arizona to be the starter. After an incredible debut season with the Coyotes, last year was lost almost completely to injury and Kuemper ended up staking his claim to the job.

Even with only 13 games played this season, Raanta has still been quite impressive. His own .919 save percentage is nothing to scoff at and he clearly has the ability to keep the Coyotes in the division title race. That said, Raanta hasn’t been able to stay healthy and will now be tested on a regular basis.

Injury Notes: Larsson, Prout, Raanta

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The Edmonton Oilers have internal options to replace top defender Adam Larsson, who unfortunately suffered a major injury – a fractured fibula – in the very first game of the year. The team has recalled promising prospect Evan Bouchard and could also turn to another prospect in Caleb Jones or veteran Brandon Manning, who both remain with AHL Bakersfield. However, none of those three will be a seamless fit as Larsson’s stand-in and Edmonton will feel his absence even if the rest of their defense corps steps up. Facing a six-to-eight week prognosis, the Oilers may need to look elsewhere if they want to avoid a rocky start through the first two months of the season. TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that the team is not necessarily looking for a trade already, but is not opposed to going outside the organization to try to replace Larsson. McKenzie opines that a similar defender, one who can log major minutes and play a shutdown role, is not exactly available though. The one name McKenzie mentions as an affordable acquisition is recently-waived veteran Thomas Hickey of the New York Islanders, but McKenzie doubts that Hickey could adequately fill the role left by Larsson and feels his three-year contract is not worth the gamble. It seems the team is most likely going to work with their current group for the time being, with Kris Russell the most likely candidate to move up to the first pair, and will wait to see if an addition is truly needed. Of course, if the Oilers decide to truly try to replace a player of Larsson’s ability via trade, Jesse Puljujarvi remains the organization’s biggest trade chip.

  • Ahead of the San Jose Sharks’ season opener, it seemed that the final blue line spot was a decision between rookie Mario Ferraro and veteran Dalton Prout. However, both defenders ended up playing as Erik Karlsson missed the game for the birth of his child. The decision won’t be very difficult moving forward though. After missing the team’s morning skate, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz has confirmed that Prout is out indefinitely with an upper-body injury suffered in the opener. There is no timeline for his return, meaning Ferraro could have plenty of time to assert himself as a regular member on the San Jose blue line. Additionally, the team has recalled defenseman Jacob Middleton to add some more depth on the back end.
  • It looked like Antti Raanta would be healthy to begin the season for the Arizona Coyotes, but the team opted not to rush him back, likely in light of how Darcy Kuemper played in his stead last season. Raanta began the season on a conditioning stint with AHL Tuscon, but it was unclear if he would actually see action or simply treat the experience like an extended training camp. Wonder no more, as beat writer Alexander Kinkopf reports that Raanta will actually get the call for the Roadrunners in their season opener tonight. Kinkopf relays word from Arizona head coach Rick Tocchet, who says that Raanta wanted to “sharpen his game” with live action before returning to regular NHL duty and he will get that opportunity tonight. It remains unclear how long the Coyotes expect to be without Raanta as he’s on a conditioning stint, but with the recently-extended Kuemper and recently-claimed Eric Comrie in the mix, with a serviceable third-string in Adin Hill around as well, the team may be looking to make a trade from their goalie depth upon Raanta’s return.

Arizona Coyotes Extend Darcy Kuemper

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Just a day after claiming goaltender Eric Comrie off waivers, the Arizona Coyotes have locked up one of their other padded protectors. Darcy Kuemper has signed a two-year extension that will keep him from unrestricted free agency next summer and lock him up through the 2021-22 season. The deal carries an average annual value of $4.5MM. GM John Chayka released a short statement:

We are extremely pleased to sign Darcy to a two-year extension. Darcy had an incredible season last year and established himself as one of the NHL’s best goaltenders. With Darcy and Antti [Raanta], we are confident that we have one of the best goaltending tandems in the League.

It’s hard to argue with Chayka about Kuemper becoming one of the best goaltenders in the league, even if his stardom hasn’t risen quite as high in hockey circles. The 29-year old posted a .925 save percentage through 55 games last season for the Coyotes after Raanta went down to injury, including an incredible .933 in 2019. Finishing fifth in Vezina Trophy voting, Kuemper actually recorded the same save percentage and a better goals against average than the eventual winner Andrei Vasilevskiy.

A $4.5MM cap hit puts Kuemper 17th among goaltenders in the NHL for next season, tied with Mikko Koskinen of the Edmonton Oilers and just ahead of Jordan Binnington’s new deal with the St. Louis Blues. It also takes him just ahead of Raanta, who is under contract through the 2020-21 season at a $4.25MM hit. That duo has shown that they are more than capable of providing excellent goaltending for the Coyotes, but will need to stay healthy in order to get Arizona back to the playoffs.

For a team that has for so long been considered a cheap organization, the Coyotes already now have more than $80MM committed to 2020-21. While some of that is Marian Hossa’s dead contract that will be covered by insurance and can be used as long-term injury relief if necessary, the team has also made substantial investments in their core pieces over the last few years. Kuemper will be considered part of that core now for the next few seasons.

Craig Morgan of The Athletic was first to report that a deal had been reached.

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